Tag Archives: doctor-patient communication

How To Tell Someone That She Is Dying

Posted on Friday, July 11, 2014

Elizabeth’s breast cancer had already spread to her bones and was now invading lymph nodes in her right armpit, causing painful swelling that kept her up at night. Today, however, as she walked into her oncologist’s office, Elizabeth felt like … Continue reading →

Posted in Critical Decisions, Medical Decision Making | Tagged

If Costs Are Unknown, Can Doctors Still Talk About Them?

Posted on Tuesday, June 17, 2014

I have been writing a bit lately on the need for healthcare providers to talk with their patients about healthcare costs, if for no other reason than to enable patients to determine whether they can afford to pay for the healthcare that … Continue reading →

Posted in Health Policy, Medical Decision Making, Uncategorized | Tagged , ,

New Review of Critical Decisions

Posted on Thursday, May 15, 2014

My heart was warmed by a new, and very positive, review of a Critical Decisions. I always find myself agreeing with people who liked my book. Funny thing. Anyway, here is the review: “This is a very belated review. And … Continue reading →

Posted in Critical Decisions | Tagged ,

Want narcotics just ask for them?

Posted on Wednesday, April 2, 2014

A very disturbing new study was just published, in which physicians viewed a video of a patient with back pain asking for OxyContin. Twenty percent of docs said they would prescribe that med under that circumstance: …Too often, doctors prescribe … Continue reading →

Posted in Medical Decision Making, Miscellaneous | Tagged ,

Discussing Financial Toxicity in Oncology Settings

Posted on Tuesday, January 28, 2014

The American Society of Clinical Oncology is one of the leading specialty organizations for physicians who take care of patients with cancer. A reporter from ASCO just wrote a nice piece, in which she questioned me to go into more … Continue reading →

Posted in Medical Decision Making | Tagged , ,

More Discussion about Discussing Out-Of-Pocket Costs

Posted on Monday, December 23, 2013

In the wake of my recent New York Times op-ed, and other writing about patient out-of-pocket costs, I was interviewed by Tammy Worth, a writer at Renal and Urology News. She did a great job of exploring this controversial topic. … Continue reading →

Posted in Medical Decision Making | Tagged ,

Getting Good Cancer Care by Asking the Right Questions

Posted on Tuesday, December 17, 2013

Not long ago, I spoke with a freelance journalist, Charlotte Huff, who put together a really nice article in Cancer Today, describing how cancer patients can get more engaged in their care. I thought I would share a bit of that … Continue reading →

Posted in Medical Decision Making | Tagged ,

If Batman Was Your Doctor

Posted on Monday, December 9, 2013

I thought I would pass along this hilarious cartoon, suggesting a new way to “nudge” patients to use fewer antibiotics. Of course that nudge requires your doctor to be Batman, and Batman to be a pretty assertive type of physician: … Continue reading →

Posted in Miscellaneous | Tagged

Are You Getting Too Much Medical Care?

Posted on Thursday, December 5, 2013

This summer I had the pleasure of speaking with a very intelligent journalist, who was working on an article about overtreatment in medical care. That article has just come out, and I thought I would give you a sample of … Continue reading →

Posted in Medical Decision Making | Tagged ,

Why Discussing the Cost of an MRI to Evaluate Knee Pain Can Be a Total Pain

Posted on Friday, November 15, 2013

I want to share a wonderful blog post with you, written by one of “my” students, Laura Mortimer – a student in the Masters in Public Policy program at the Sanford School at Duke, who also happens to be a talented … Continue reading →

Posted in Medical Decision Making | Tagged ,